Is there a gay pay gap?

Two researches from Australia (2015) and Germany (2017) show that there is a gay pay gap.

Only it works in different ways for gay men and gay women.

The research from Australia, back in 2015, shows that gay men are paid 13% less than straight men but at the same time gay women are paid 13% more than their straight female colleagues.

A new dimension of workplace discrimination has been exposed: the gay pay gap.

Australia’s first study of how sexual orientation affects wages has revealed gay men get paid up to 18 per cent less than their straight counterparts.

The paper’s author, University of Melbourne economist Andrea La Nauze, says the only apparent explanation for the “substantial wage penalty” suffered by gay men is prejudice.

“The main take-home message from the paper is that Australian workers doing the same job seem to be paid differently because of their sexual preference,” she said.

The findings are consistent with studies in Europe and the US which have also identified a “robust and persistent” wage penalty for gay men.

“There are grounds for concern that workers in Australia, particularly gay men, are discriminated against because of their sexual orientation,” Ms La Nauze’s paper concludes.

The second research from Germany, published in August 2017, shows the same thing. Gay men are paid 2,1 per hour less while gay females are paid 2,0 per hour more.

Gay men earn significantly less per hour in Germany than straight men, despite the fact that they tend to be better educated, a new study on the “sexuality pay gap” shows.

The study by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), which was released on Thursday in Berlin, shows that gay men earn on average €2.14 per hour less than heterosexual men, who earn on average €18.

When factors such as age, education and the industry the individual is active in are taken into account, the gap increases, with gay men earning €2.64 less.

The data also showed that lesbian women earn €2 more per hour than heterosexual women. With an average hourly wage of €16.44, lesbian women earn roughly the same as gay men.

The study is based on an annual representative survey which asks respondents about their income, education, profession, health and sexual orientation. The answers of 460 lesbians and gay men were compared to the answers of 39,000 heterosexual men and women.

Study author Martin Kroh cautioned that the results did not provide proof that discrimination in the work place was the cause of the pay gap between gay and straight men.

“This is only an initial study. There are probably a whole set of explanations for the pay gap,” he said.

One possible cause of the difference could be the fact that gay men often do more overtime at work than straight men, a factor which pushes their hourly wage down.

According to the researchers openly gay, lesbian and bisexual people have several features which distinguish them from heterosexuals. They tend to be better educated, they live alone more often, and they rely on friends as confidants rather than family members.

The Gay and Lesbian Association in Germany said the report showed that more statistical research needed to be done on life as a gay person in Germany.

“In order to deal with discrimination it must first become visible,” said spokeswoman Jenny Renner.